Prizes and medals

The academy awards prizes in recognition of research and scientific excellence, focusing in particular on the next generation of young scholars.

The President hands out all prizes and medals during the ceremonial annual meeting of the academy, which is traditionally held in Munich in early December. The winners are proposed by the members and cannot nominate themselves.

Prizes

Coin commemorating the foundation of the academy designed by Franz Andreas Schega. Minerva wearing a liberty cap and holding a staff and a shield with the academy coat of arms (motto: “Tendit ad aequum”); to the right of her box seat is an owl. The bottom inscription translates as: “Electoral Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, founded in Munich on 28 March 1759, the birthday of the duke”.

Schelling Prize

By awarding the Schelling Prize, the academy recognises the outstanding achievements or life’s work of top researchers. Inaugurated in 2006, it is awarded every two years alternately to a recipient from the humanities and the natural sciences and is worth EUR 25,000. The academy announces the theme of the award in the corresponding invitation for submissions. The academy’s most prestigious scientific prize is named in honour of the philosopher and academy President Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph von Schelling (1775-1854) and is sponsored by E.ON Bavaria.

Proposals may be put forward by the Bavarian state universities, the Catholic University of Eichstätt, the Universität der Bundeswehr München and the Max Planck Society; personal applications are not permitted. Nominations are reserved for scientists who have demonstrated outstanding achievements in Germany or other countries in the announced field of the award. Those submitting the proposals are not restricted to naming members of their own institution. Members of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities are excluded from the award.

Robert Sauer Prize

This prize, endowed by Dr. Utta Bachmann-Morenz, was awarded between 1998 and 2014 in memory of the mathematician and academy President Robert Sauer (1898-1970). The EUR 5,000 prize recognised outstanding research achievements in mathematics/the natural sciences and was specifically reserved for women at the donor’s request.

Peregrinus Foundation Prize

The prize endowed by the Peregrinus Foundation, which was established by Professor Dr. Rudolf Meimberg, was awarded by the academy for the first time in 1997. It rewards young humanities scholars whose publications have led to greater understanding of interdisciplinary approaches and the questions arising from this kind of approach. Humanities publications of major socio-political relevance are also considered.

Academy Prize

The Academy Prize has been awarded annually since 1961 to recognise the scientific achievements of individuals who are not engaged in research on a full-time basis. The prize worth EUR 5,000 is funded by the Foundation for the Promotion of Science in Bavaria.

Academy Prize of the Karl Thiemig Foundation for the Promotion of Young Scientists

The Academy Prize of the Karl Thiemig Foundation for the Promotion of Young Scientists was introduced in 2010. It is awarded to staff who have distinguished themselves through outstanding scientific achievements or exceptional commitment, or who have made a valuable contribution to scientific research at the academy.

Proposals may be put forward by all the chairs of the scientific commissions, the head of the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre, the head of the Walther-Meißner-Institute for Low Temperature Research and the President of the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities. The prize is worth EUR 3,000 and is funded by the Karl Thiemig Foundation for the Promotion of Art and Science in Bavaria.